Thoughts and reflections from a progressive, gay, Catholic perspective.

Sunday, September 06, 2015

Out and About – Summer 2015 (Part 1)

Regular readers of The Wild Reed will be familiar with my "Out and About" series, one that I began in April 2007 as a way of documenting my life as an “out” gay Catholic man, seeking to be all “about” the Spirit-inspired work of embodying God’s justice and compassion in the Church and the world. I've continued the series in one form or another every year since – in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, and now into 2015.

So let's get started with this latest installment . . .

And I'll start with an important event that my friend Joan (right) and I participated in on Friday, July 31. It was a "solidarity action" in downtown Minneapolis hosted by the Black Liberation Project and in honor of Sandra Bland and other women of color who have recently died in police custody.

This summer saw the first anniversary of the shooting death of unarmed black teenager Michael Brown, killed by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri on August 11, 2014. In the wake of the killing, protests engulfed the community – drawing a heavy-handed police response, with officers armed with assault weapons and outfitted with military equipment. (For more on 2014's "summer of strife," click here.)

In response to the anniversary of events in Ferguson and the ongoing killing by police of unarmed people of color throughout the U.S. (see, for example, here and here), a number of thoughtful commentaries have been written. Following are some that I've found particularly insightful and helpful.

Since the beginning of the year my friend Pete and I have been meeting every Thursday for breakfast. We thought it might be fun to get a photograph of us at every new restaurant we visited. And so . . .

In the photo above we're at the Colossal Cafe in Minneapolis on July 2, while at right we're at Sun Street Bakery, Minneapolis on July 9.

Left: On August 6 I hosted our breakfast . . . on the rooftop of the condo complex in which I was condo- (and cat-sitting) at the time.

Right: While working in the garden on Saturday, July 11, I unearthed an interesting artifact.

Now, while some might say it's an old wall ornament of a pheasant, I see a phoenix, ancient symbol of transformation and new life! I take it as a sign of a new beginning – or perhaps a series of new beginnings – in my life.

Above and below: Twice this summer I did a condo- and cat-sitting gig for friends who live in the Mill District of Minneapolis. For more commentary and images of my time in "Mill City," click here and here.

On the evening of Sunday, June 28, my friend Joan hosted an event at her home in Robbinsdale that served as both a birthday party for my friend and housemate Tim (above center) and my "Poldark party" – a gathering of our friends to watch the first two episodes of the BBC drama based on the novels of Winston Graham.

Anyone familiar with this blog would know I'm a great admirer of the Poldark novels (see, for example, here, here and here). For reviews of Poldark, click here. For my thoughts on the premiere of the show, click here.

1 comment:

Thanks for the roundup of links to Black Lives Matter and racial-justice articles. It's great to see Catholics, especially LGBT Catholics, mobilizing in solidarity with people of color (some of whom are Catholic and LGBT)!

There is so much need for churches to stop waiting for integration to just happen, and to actively work together -- listening, learning, foregoing any white privilege, and practicing equality on a weekly basis.

Thanks also for the links to Mill City, which I wasn't very familiar with -- I'll have to explore it the next time I'm in the Twin Cities. I lived in converted mills in Connecticut and Rhode Island, and greatly appreciated their use of exposed brick, as well as their history, spaciousness, and simplicity.

I established The Wild Reed in 2006 as a sign of solidarity with all who are dedicated to living lives of integrity – though, in particular, with gay people seeking to be true to both the gift of their sexuality and their Catholic faith. The Wild Reed simply invites people to observe and reflect upon one man’s progressive, gay, Catholic perspective on faith, sexuality, politics, and culture.

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